Pocono shoppers line up for Black Friday bargains

When it comes to getting at the front of the line for Black Friday discounts, one Tannersville family has it down to a science.

MICHAEL SADOWSKI

When it comes to getting at the front of the line for Black Friday discounts, one Tannersville family has it down to a science.

Eric Smeltz, 37, arrived at Sears in the Stroud Mall at 10:30 a.m. looking for a 50-inch television as the first in line.

Down the road a bit, his 14-year-old stepson, Jordan Merring, was first in line at Best Buy to nab a 42-inch TV for $200.

Meanwhile, across town, Smeltz's wife, Yvonne, was at Wal-Mart in East Stroudsburg waiting for her chance to grab a bargain.

"We started planning Monday," Smeltz said about the family's discount shopping. "We moved Thanksgiving to Saturday. It's just easier that way."

Smeltz was joined by thousands of others lining up outside Poconos stores all day Thursday, all of them vying for the best prices on the biggest presents for Christmas in anticipation of Black Friday, the busiest — and craziest — shopping day of the year.

When Merring arrived at Best Buy in Stroud Township around 10 a.m., he beat out Andre Alvarez, 23, of East Stroudsburg, by mere seconds. But it wasn't the first time he was there.

He had checked Wednesday night to see if anyone was camping out in front of the store, then early Thursday morning. When no one was there, he went home for breakfast and still made it to the front of the line.

That was bad news for Sasha Ifill, 15, of Mount Pocono. She had actually been at the store at about 9 a.m. Thursday, but went next door to Old Navy because her mom wanted to check out the store's deals, leaving the line open for the taking.

"I came out and saw people there, and I said, 'Mom, you had to go and look at sweaters, huh?'" she laughed. "But we're all getting what we want."

For Alvarez, it was his second year in a row at the front of the Best Buy line. He's getting the same thing he got last year — a TV. Last year he said he bought two of the TVs on sale, then sold one of them to a friend for more than he paid for both of it.

"I'll probably do the same thing this year, so I'm actually getting paid to be here," he joked. "TVs aren't that hard to get rid of around Christmas."

At Target in Stroud Township, Chris Green, 30, of Effort, showed up to be first in line at about 1 a.m. — and waited in shifts with his brother and wife, Jen, for 13 hours until Nadia Aristide, 38, of Canadensis, showed up to claim her spot in second position.

The group randomly stood in line together last year in front of Target as well.

Green made one mistake though. He wore a bright red sweatshirt — the same color Target employees wear.

He said at least 40 people have driven by asking him what time the store opened, thinking he worked there.

"Every time," he said. "I've gotten used to it."

Around 5 p.m., Chris Hemlinger, 21, and Taylor Cividanes, 20, both of Stroudsburg, were the only ones waiting outside Stroud Mall.

But the deal they were waiting for was impressive. Hemlinger was waiting for Game Stop to open to buy one of the four Playstaion 3 sets on sale for $200. He was trading in his old Playstation 2 for $90 of credit and taking advantage of the store's double trade-in value Black Friday offer to buy a new Playstation 3 for $20.

"And I have some games to trade in too, I may end up getting it for free," he said. "This is my first time out for Black Friday, but I love it so far."